By Sarah Osman

Wisely, Netflix has renewed Girls5eva for a third season. This series about a one-hit wonder ’90s girl group attempting to make a comeback remains as witty and satirical as ever.

A scene from Girls5eva, season 3. Photo: Netflix

In 2021, a little-known comedy aired on Peacock. Girls5eva, which followed a girl group from the early 2000s as they reunited in the now 2020s, was clever, funny, and sharp — akin to the humor of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (which makes sense since Tina Fey worked on both shows). The series mocked everything from 2000s female pop stars being asked about their virginity to New York lonely boys: children with no siblings being raised in New York City who read the New Yorker. Yet Girls5eva never caught on, despite critical acclaim (I blame Peacock, which barely marketed the show). After just two seasons, Girls5eva was canceled; disappointed, I feared the show would fade into obscurity, just like its titular band.

Thankfully, that hasn’t happened. Netflix renewed the series for a third season, and it remains as witty and satirical as ever. When we last left the group, they had been dropped from their tour (sponsored by the Property Brothers). After learning their song about Fort Worth was a hit in Fort Worth, the ladies head to the Lone Star State. Wickie (Renée Elise Goldberry, Broadway royalty) senses that the group is stuck, so she books the band a major show in November. Girls5eva has no choice but to leave Fort Worth and embark on their own tour.

While Sara Bareilles, Busy Philipps, and Goldsberry are comedic geniuses, this season belongs to Paula Pell. Pell plays Gloria, who, after separating from her wife, decides to sleep with every type of woman she never got to. She even makes a spreadsheet to keep track of her conquests. Her types range from “cigar mommi” to “pre-Friends Courtney Cox.” She’s faced with a “boob desert” when they hit the Ozarks, but learns that if you show up for the gays, they show up for you. Pell delivers Gloria’s most ridiculous lines with an irresistible comic dryness. Gloria strikes up a friendship with a famous British singer who she believes is a trucker named Mad Dog, and they bond over their shared love of a Macaroni Grill rip-off, in the season’s most endearing plotline. Yes, Gloria is gay — but that’s not her only defining characteristic, a refreshing change from other series in which queer characters only pop up to show how queer they are. Pell’s comedic brilliance has always been underappreciated; this season proves why she so richly deserves to be acknowledged.

Girls5eva has always served up biting satire, and season three is no different. When in the Ozarks, the ladies have to deal with a state senator (John Early) who shows up for their show and bans them from singing their songs, in favor of John Mellencamp covers. At the same time, the same senator pops up for Dawn’s (Bareilles) ultrasound. The politico is insanely frustrating, thanks to Early’s nimble take on the very real-life male senators who have made a career of controlling women. But, as infuriating as the character is (and what his ham-fisted privilege says about the current state of women’s rights), these scenes still generate plenty of laughs, from Bareilles and Goldsberry practicing Mellencamp songs to Phillips busting out a marching drum for the band’s hit, “Big Pussy Energy.”

Domineering senators isn’t the only thing Girls5eva mocks. Absurd musician documentaries, Ticketmaster’s prices, and scam culture are also lampooned, as is, once again, early 2000s culture. We are now 20 years past the turn of the century, and some are beginning to dissect that period. For example, in the third season’s fourth episode, Girls5eva is invited to play a birthday show in Orlando: the theme is “2000s nostalgia.” There, Dawn sees the impact she had on her fans, particularly what happened to a now grown birthday girl who took the very sexist lyrics of Girls5eva’s earlier songs to heart. The comedy examines how we are now looking back (in chagrin) at how women were portrayed and expected to behave in the early 2000s, from completely ridiculous body standards to what was a (male) coveted vapidness. And, speaking of songs, Girls5eva continues to serve up some hilarious bangers. There’s an ode to a sweater, the Fort Worth song, and a tune about not understanding The Witcher, along with a reprise of some of the songs from the show’s first two seasons.

The one thing I missed this time around were brief flashbacks to the band’s past, particularly those that included Ashley Park, the fifth (and deceased) member of Girls5eva. Park is an underrated comedian; she should be given an opportunity to show off her farcical chops. Hopefully, Girls5eva will return, with more Park, for a fourth season. Or better yet, be renewed 5eva.

Sarah Mina Osman is a writer residing in Wilmington, NC. In addition to writing for the Arts Fuse, she has written for Watercooler HQ, Huffington Post, HelloGiggles, Young Hollywood, and Matador Network, among other sites. Her work was included in the anthology Fury: Women’s Lived Experiences in the Trump Era. She is currently a first-year fiction MFA candidate at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. When she’s not writing, she’s dancing, watching movies, traveling, or eating. She has a deep appreciation for sloths and tacos. You can keep up with her on Twitter and Instagram: @SarahMinaOsman